Posts Tagged ‘plane’
Happy New Year, Japan: Kamikaze Plane Cards From 1937 [Airplane]
Posted by: Gadget Boy in Gadget News, Technology on December 31st, 2009
Japan is just a few hours away from celebrating New Year, the biggest date in the calendar. These New Year cards from 1937 mark the first ever Japanese flight to Europe, which took over 51 hours in the Kamikaze plane.
Back in 1937, the Mitsubishi Ki-15 plane flew from Tokyo to London in 51-hours, 17 minutes and 23 seconds (sure puts the 12-hour flight we endure these days into perspective), with the flight sponsored by the Asahi Shimbun newspaper to celebrate the UK’s King George VI’s coronation. The Kamikaze was piloted by Masaaki Iinuma, who died a few years later in the Pacific war, and sadly the Kamikaze didn’t fare much better either. It was placed in a memorial center a few years after the inaugural flight, but the building, along with the plane, was destroyed in WWII.
These New Year’s greeting cards are a beautiful reminder of the journey undertaken 72 years ago. Happy New Year, Japanese readers! [Museum of Fine Arts, Boston via Pink Tentacle]
Typo Caused Airbus Plane Tail-Strike During Takeoff in Australia [Planes]
Posted by: Gadget Boy in Gadget News, Technology on December 22nd, 2009
Currently, there's a typo in a trending topic on Twitter, and it's doing my head in, though at least it won't be responsible for a plane tail-strike like the one that occurred at Melbourne Airport in Australia earlier this year.
The typo has just been discovered as the reason why the United Arab Emirates A340-541 Airbus had problems taking off, with a report claiming:
"During the reduced thrust takeoff, the aircraft's tail made contact with the runway surface, but the aircraft did not begin to climb. The captain commanded and selected take-off and go-around engine thrust and the aircraft commenced a climb. After jettisoning fuel to reduce the landing weight, the flight crew returned the aircraft to Melbourne for landing."
Apparently, the plane's first officer recorded the weight into the flight system as 262.9 tons, when in actual fact it was 362.9 ton. Quite a difference, you'll agree. While there were no injuries to the 257 passengers, 14 cabin crew and four flight crew, two of the crew resigned afterwards, presumably from the shame of watching the tail of the aircraft bounce against the runway three times. [ATSB report via Ieee Spectrum]
Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner takes flight for the first time
Posted by: Gadget Boy in Gadget News, Technology on December 15th, 2009
Boeing's 787 Dreamliner takes flight for the first time originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 15 Dec 2009 14:09:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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787 First Flight | Email this | Comments Solar Impulse Plane Flies For First Time in Switzerland [Plane]
Posted by: Gadget Boy in Gadget News on December 4th, 2009
The Solar Impulse plane was flown for the first time in Switzerland yesterday, and leading the solar-powered project was Captain Bertrand Piccard, part of the first team to fly the world in a balloon in 1999.
The Solar Impulse team has been working on the project since 2003, with the carbon-fiber plane wingspan measuring 262-feet and weighing 4,409 pounds. Over at Dübendorf Airfield in Switzerland yesterday, pilot Markus Scherdel successfully flew it for the first time, flying 350 meters in 28 seconds, with an altitude of just a meter. Powering the four electric motors are 12,000 photovoltaic solar cells, though yesterday they were aided with on-board batteries.
Despite being worked on for close to seven years, it's still early days yet for the Impulse Solar, with the next big step in the quest to circumnavigate the world being a 36-hour flight in summer 2010. Make it so, Captain Piccard. [Wired]
Captain Piccard’s Solar Impulse takes flight
Posted by: Gadget Boy in Gadget News on December 4th, 2009
Captain Piccard's Solar Impulse takes flight originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 04 Dec 2009 05:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Wired | Email this | Comments Captain Piccard’s Solar Impulse starts runway testing
Posted by: Gadget Boy in Gadget News on November 24th, 2009

Continue reading Captain Piccard's Solar Impulse starts runway testing
Captain Piccard's Solar Impulse starts runway testing originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 24 Nov 2009 06:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Solar Impulse | Email this | Comments Southwest builds first ‘green plane,’ Ma Earth shows her gratitude
Posted by: Gadget Boy in Gadget News on October 25th, 2009
[Via DailyFinance]
Read - Southwest press release
Read - China View's fuel calculations
Filed under: Transportation
Southwest builds first 'green plane,' Ma Earth shows her gratitude originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 25 Oct 2009 00:11:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | CommentsVideo: Antares DLR-H2 becomes planet’s first fuel cell-powered aircraft
Posted by: Gadget Boy in Gadget News on July 9th, 2009
Continue reading Video: Antares DLR-H2 becomes planet's first fuel cell-powered aircraft
Filed under: Transportation
Video: Antares DLR-H2 becomes planet's first fuel cell-powered aircraft originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 09 Jul 2009 08:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Read | Permalink | Email this | CommentsCaptain Piccard unveils Solar Impulse HB-SIA solar-powered plane
Posted by: Gadget Boy in Gadget News on July 4th, 2009
[Via Gizmag]
Filed under: Transportation
Captain Piccard unveils Solar Impulse HB-SIA solar-powered plane originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 03 Jul 2009 22:06:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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